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How to Watch PBA Games on Mobile
By Hannah Finch - April 5, 2019 Filipinos’ love for basketball is evidenced by their desire to watch games of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) at home or wherever they are in the world. The PBA is the Philippines’ counterpart of the US-based NBA. As the country’s premier basketball league, many Filipinos are tuning in to every live game on their TV sets at home. But if you’re like many Filipinos who cannot watch the games on TV, as in the case of OFWs, you can now watch live PBA games on your smartphone. How? You may be wondering. Well in this article we’re going to take you through step-by-step and show you 4 different ways to watch PBA games on mobile. But first, let’s take a quick look at the Philippine Basketball League and what it has become today. About the PBA Now in its 44th year, the PBA is the country’s most popular sporting organization. It is also Asia’s first professional basketball league. Moreover, it is the world’s second-oldest professional basketball league that still exists until now, after the NBA. It is composed of 12 teams, namely Alaska, Barangay Ginebra San Miguel, Blackwater Elite, Columbian Dyip, Magnolia Hotshots, Meralco Bolts, NLEX Road Warriors, North Port Batang Pier, Phoenix Fuel Masters, Rain or Shine Elastopainters, San Miguel Beermen, and TNT Katropa. A PBA season is divided into three conferences or tournaments (Philippine, Commissioner’s, and Governor’s) wherein the teams compete for a conference cup. In 2019, the league holds games every Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Basketball aficionados cannot afford to miss a game, especially during semi-finals and finals of each of the three conferences. How to Watch the PBA Games on Mobile Through modern technology, you can now stream real-time PBA games on your smartphone using the following methods. PBA Web The official website of the league offers live streaming of its games for the sake of Filipinos abroad. On Chrome, Safari, or other mobile browsers, visit the PBA website to watch the matches as they happen. Apart from real-time streaming, the league’s official website also provides relevant information about the league, including the players, statistics, and standings. Live Streaming of IBC 13, IBC Sports and ESPN5 You can also watch the PBA games on IBC Sports, which holds exclusive rights to show PBA games on local TV during weekends on IBC 13 and on ESPN5, which holds exclusive rights to show PBA games on local TV. IBC Sports is the sports division of IBC 13, a leading TV station. Aside from the PBA, IBC Sports also covers the the US-based NBA games every Saturday morning. Apart from the PBA and NBA basketball, the station also shows the boxing matches under the Blow by Blow banner every Sunday morning and the Asia's largest mixed-martial arts (MMA) ONE Championship every Sunday night. For ESPN5, it is the sports division of TV5, a local TV station, under the partnership agreement with ESPN, the US-based sports network. Aside from the PBA, ESPN5 also covers games played by Gilas, the basketball team representing the Philippines in international events. Apart from basketball, the station also shows other sporting events like the SuperLiga Volleyball Tournament. Free Streaming on VLC player If you prefer watching both IBC and TV5 live streaming of the PBA on the VLC or GOM player app, you can do so by following the below steps. *Open the VLC app *Tap the Menu (three horizontal lines) on the upper left of the screen *On the dropdown menu select Stream *On the Network Address form, input – http://stream1.news5.ph:1935/n5e/tv5/playlist.m3u8 *Click the orange arrow and wait for the live feed to start PBA Official Mobile App PBA also has an official mobile app. While it shows the latest scores, schedules, standings, statistics, and updates from around the league, it doesn’t have live streaming capabilities. With the methods listed above, you will never fail to cheer for your favorite PBA team, even while only watching from your smartphone.